Page 31 of The Spy and His Lady Love
Dear me, the day after the wedding and they all visit?“Welcome. Please sit down. You have arrived at the correct time for tea.” Penelope smiled to her family, sat down and poured tea for all. Strange how cook knew to expect visitors. “Did I not see all of you yesterday at my wedding?” Even she heard the sarcasm in her voice.
“Yes. Well,” Bella, began, “we wanted to be assured you survived your wedding night.”
Emma and Amelia both gasped out, “Bella!”
“Honestly,” Bella huffed. “It’s what you both are thinking. Our dear new sister marries a mysterious, scarred, one-eyed duke. A man rumored to work for the Crown in some secret capacity. Surely, we have a right to worry over her safety. Spies and gentlemen with dubious reputations could come and go in this house at all hours of the night and put our dear sister in danger.”
Penelope laughed and nearly choked on her tea. “Really, Bella. What an imagination you have. I would expect it from Emma, our family gothic novelist, but you? Surely you don’t really believe I’m in any danger from my husband or his associates?”
Bella looked at Emma and Amelia, silently pleading for help. Amelia took pity. “I believe our family history and the tragic events that seem to plague us has Bella worried.” Amelia sipped her tea. “I’m not worried. The duke, although both handsome and scarred and mysterious all at the same time, appears to dote on you. Besides, Wentworth would never have married Penelope off to a degenerate.”
Bella snorted most unladylike, “Well, let me remind you, Amelia, how our dear brother nearly married you off to a duke who was a degenerate of the first order. You barely escaped unscathed. The man tried to force himself on you.”
Amelia’s cheeks pinked and once again Penelope was hearing about the lives of her family members that she knew nothing about. So much had happened to them before she found them. Or rather, they found her after receiving her letter introducing herself. Penning that missive was one of the hardest things she’d ever done. Asking the family of her dead father for help, knowing she was a bastard and an embarrassment to them hadn’t been easy. Somehow she’d mustered the courage and sent the letter off, praying someone in the Seabrook family would take pity on her and rescue her from her dire predicament.Now that she’d met the entire family she should not have worried. More kind, compassionate, and honorable people didn’t exist. She tried to remind herself every day how lucky she was.
“Someday real soon, I wish to hear all the scandal, gossip, and stories that have followed our family and close friends, but not today. Today we’re celebrating my marriage.”
“Yes,” Emma chimed in. “We came to hear about your wedding night.”
Now it was Penelope’s turn to blush. Surely they didn’t expect her to share the intimate details of last night?
Of course, all the ladies present with her were married and had birthed children. So they… More heat suffused her cheeks at the thought of…
“You are blushing,” Bella said. “Do we take that as a wonderful sign. That the marriage bed with the duke was…fulfilling for a better word.”
All four of them giggled. “It was fine. He was kind and gentle.”
Between nibbles on her biscuit, Emma said, “Good. Now let’s talk about this monstrous house. It needs a feminine touch. Has His Grace said anything about making changes?”
“Actually, he has.” Penelope looked around the drawing room. Although it was nice and cozy, it did need some updating and some brightening. Most all the rooms in the house were dreary. “I wouldn’t even know where to begin.”
“Say no more,” Bella added. “I will help you. Since I recently remodeled Northborough Estate, I have the perfect designer and carpenters for you. Shall I send them over?”
For the second time, Penelope nearly choked on her tea. “My goodness. I must discuss it with him. I don’t think he expects me to remodel immediately. I need to get acclimated to being the lady of the house first.”
“Sorry.” Bella turned serious. “I’ve been distracted of late and was hoping for something to do. Selfish of me. Please forgive me.”
Penelope had never seen Bella so somber and near tears before. Not that she’d known her all that long, but still. “When I do remodel, Bella, you will be the first person I contact for help. Meanwhile,” she paused and studied Bella, “is there something amiss with you?”
After several moments, she finally wiped a stray tear from her eyes. “I lost a babe last week.”
All three gasped. “Why didn’t you say something.” Amelia reached over and patted her sister on the knee.
“Because I had just confirmed it with the physician the week before. Hardly had time to get used to being with child and then…” She shook her head and wiped away her tears. “I’m fine. Myles took it hard. I know there will be more children, so that is what I’m looking ahead too. Also, I can’t wait until our Penelope has news for us.”
Third time she almost choked on her tea at the words coming out of her sister’s mouths. “Yes. Well. I don’t believe it happened last night. Doesn’t it take time?”
Three sets of eyes looked amusingly at her. However, Emma was the first to speak. “Sometimes all it takes is one time. Perhaps you will be one of the fortunate brides to have conceived on your wedding night.”
When she caught her breath from a coughing fit, she said, “Enough. Please. Someone tell me some juicy gossip?”
“Rumor has it Penelope Seabrook wed the Duke of Newbury in a hurried ceremony. Gossips speculate they were found in a compromising situation and her reputation would be in ruin if they didn’t wed posthaste,” Bella said with a hand flick and a laugh. “Honest. It was in the paper this morning. You asked for gossip.”
Her stomach tightened. People were reading about her private life and gossiping about her and Newbury. And what they may or may not have done? Surely the privileged members of the ton had better things and people to gossip about. Her cheeks flamed. She hated people making speculations about her and Newbury. It was nobody’s business but theirs.
It wasn’t long after when her sisters and sister-in-law left and loneliness settled in. What would she do to occupy her time each day? She could only embroider so many handkerchiefs and needlepoint so many samplers and pillows. She’d never been one to nap in the afternoon. Perhaps she could take up watercolors. Silly, she’d never thought about painting before. She now had a life of leisure, she could do anything her heart desired.
Too bad the life of leisure didn’t suit her. She needed a cause. Yes. That was it. Emma’s cause of raising funds for the women and children in London. Too bad she hadn’t thought of it when Emma was here earlier. She hurried upstairs to her chambers, sat down at her desk, and penned a note to Emma asking if she could help.
Perfect. She had a cause now. Since she’d lived the life of a servant, someone without means and money, someone who relied on the goodwill of a vile viscount, Penelope knew there were plenty of others out there who had been wronged. She intended to find them and offer up help.
Would the duke allow her to? Now that they were married, did she need to ask his permission? If the charity was run by Emma, he could hardly disapprove, could he?
